But Tonight I Need You To Stay
by TiredOfBeingNice
Summary: Benny falls ill thanks to some "peasant" who sneezes on him during a bus ride. Luckily, he has his boyfriend, Ethan, to help him through all the ups and downs of being sick; which is easy - and a bit amusing - at first, until Benny starts getting worse and a trip to the emergency room is due. (Title from "The Run and Go" by Twenty One Pilots.) For Bennyweirlover17 - you the best :)


Ethan nearly trips going up Benny's front steps, digging in his pocket for the spare keys that Benny gave him. He fumbles with them in his hands before twisting it in the lock and swinging the door open. Ethan goes through the door in a rush.

"Benny!" he calls out quickly, slamming the door shut and locking it behind him, kicking off his shoes at the same time. "Benny, I'm coming! Stay right where you are! Don't worry — you're going to be okay!"

With one final kick, he gets his shoe off and speeds up the stairs as fast as he could. He skids across the wooden floors when he reaches the top, his socks nearly making him fall right over. Ethan runs to Benny's room and bursts the door open, pulling out his Nerf gun out of his backpack.

"Get your hands off my boyfriend, demon of the night!" Ethan yells when he gets the door open, blindly shooting the holy water at Benny's bed.

"Ethan! Gahh, what the hell?!" Benny exclaims in a raspy voice, thrashing in his bedsheets. "Stop it! Jesus, do I _look_ like a vampire to you?!"

Ethan hesitantly lowers the gun. "There's no vampire?"

"Of course not, oh my god," Benny groans as he coughs between his words. "Why the hell would you think that?! You nearly gave me a heart attack — do you know how hard it is to get my spellbook and look through different defence spells in the ten seconds you broke in?!"

"Broke in?" Ethan echoes in disbelief. "Benny, you gave me a key!"

"Yeah, but I didn't give it to you so you could storm into my house like a fucking burglar! I thought I was going to die a sick man and have nothing to use against you!"

"Sick man?" Ethan repeats. "You're _sick?_ "

Benny nods slowly. "Yeah...that's why I invited you, remember?"

Ethan's eyes widen. "Benny, you texted me that there's an emergency and that I should be over as soon as I possibly could!"

"What are you on about? I didn't say it was a supernatural emergency, let alone a _regular_ emergency!"

Ethan looks at him incredulously. "Benny, you texted me 'S-O-S, there's an emergency at my place, come help me right away'!"

"Yeah, _this_ is the emergency!"

Ethan groans sitting at the foot of Benny's bed and wiping some of the holy water off his bedsheets.

"Benny, what did I tell you about texting me about emergencies?"

Benny sits upright, crossing his arms defensively. "Hey, what did _I_ tell you about emergencies? There are two kinds of emergencies, and I didn't mention either of those."

"Okay, first of all," Ethan says, "I've told you hundreds of times that texting me that you're home alone and you're horny is _not_ an emergency."

"Yes it is!"

"For 'downstairs' it is!" Ethan retorts, and Benny rolls his eyes.

"And second of all, you don't use 'SOS' unless it's a supernatural emergency — not if you have the flu from some random strangers!"

Benny places a hand on his forehead over-dramatically. "This isn't a flu, Ethan. This is the _black plague,_ and some peasant on the bus gave it to me by _sneezing on my arm!_ This is a big deal!"

Ethan bites back a smile. "You're lucky I love you, B. If I didn't, I might just ask Erica to turn you into a vampire so I can put this holy water to use."

Benny places a hand over his heart. "Ouch. That hurt me in my soon-to-be-undead heart, E."

Ethan smiles, leaning forward to kiss Benny's forehead when Benny quickly leers back, putting a hand in front of his face. Ethan reels back in surprise.

"What? Was my joke so offensive that you won't let me kiss you?" Ethan asks, his voice low and sweet. "C'mere, you asshole."

Benny shakes his head, swallowing loudly. "Ethan, I have the black plague, remember?"

Before Ethan could answer, Benny goes into another coughing fit, sniffling in between each intake of breath. Ethan feels his insides melt.

"Oh, poor baby," he cooes, placing a hand on Benny's forehead. Benny rolls his eyes. "Goodness, you're boiling. How hot are you right now?"

Benny manages a tired wink. "Very."

Ethan ignores the comment and holds out the Nerf gun. "Do you want to drink some water?"

"...you're kidding right?"

"Of course I am," Ethan says with a grin as he stands up and walks towards the door. "I'm going downstairs to get you a water bottle or something. You stay put and then we can choose a movie to watch."

"You're going to stay with me?" Benny asks in surprise.

Ethan turns around. "Why wouldn't I?"

Benny frowns. "It's Sunday. I don't know how long I'm going to be here, so are you willing to spend your entire Sunday with a sick, tired-of-living me?"

Ethan smiles, gently putting his bag at the foot of the door. "I was going to spend the whole day with you even if you weren't dying of the so-called 'black plague'."

Benny coughs when he manages a laugh. Ethan shoots him one more pitiful smile and races downstairs to get everything he needed to aid his sick boyfriend.

* * *

"Are you even paying attention?" Ethan asks halfway _Guardians of the Galaxy._ "You do know that Chris Pratt doesn't have to save the universe if you're not interested."

Ethan faces Benny and realizes he's barely awake, struggling to keep his eyes open. His face is flushed red, and beads of sweat covered his forehead. Ethan pauses the movie quickly.

"Benny?" He shakes the spellmaster a bit. "Are you alright?"

Benny manages a nod. "Mmhm."

"You're really sweaty," Ethan presses.

"S'fine," Benny mumbles, despite feeling his stomach do somersaults in his chest. Ethan's eyes widen when Benny gags, and he races to his washroom and gets a bin.

Benny hurls over the edge of his bed, and vomits. Ethan holds the bin out and when Benny sits back up, there are tears down his face.

"Crap, that was disgusting, I'm sorry," Benny mumbles, his voice raspy and dry. Ethan goes to the bathroom and washes out the bin. He brings it back into the room, placing it beside the bed and sitting with Benny.

"Benny, don't apologize for being sick," Ethan says quietly, rubbing his forehead. "Are you okay? Do you want me to get you some water?"

Benny shakes his head. "I still have some in my bottle, thanks. And I kind of want to sleep, if you don't mind — I think I have the beginnings of a terrible headache."

Ethan's heart melts. "Of course you can sleep. I'll be right here the whole time. When you wake up, I can run and get some chicken soup from my place."

"No," Benny murmurs, fatigue washing over him, "just...stay. Please."

Ethan smiles as Benny's eyes begin to flutter close.

"Of course, Benny," he whispers fondly. "I'm not going anywhere."

* * *

When Benny wakes up, he feels his stomach turning. His tired eyes flicker over to Ethan, who is watching a completely different movie.

"Ethan," he manages to say, nudging his boyfriend. "Ethan, I'm gonna be sick."

Ethan's eyes widen and he faces him. "Crap, wait, I put the bin in the washroom —"

"No, s'fine," Benny mumbles, kicking the blankets off him and trudging out of bed. Ethan nearly goes pale, and he scrambles off the bed.

"Benny, stop, you can't go!" Ethan whines, but helps him anyway. "God, Benny, you should be in bed. I could've got the bin, I —"

Benny stumbles forward, tripping on his own feet. Ethan pulls him up before he can fall, swinging his arm around his shoulder.

"Woah, careful," Ethan says. "You're going to get a bump on your head if you rush like that."

"Fuck off," Benny mumbles tiredly, blinking to clear the lines in his vision. "I hate when you baby me around like that." The last part is a lie, but Benny nor Ethan have the heart to say anything.

"Are you okay, B?" Benny can hear Ethan, but could barely see him — everything around him looked like a blurry cloud, including his boyfriend.

Benny nods in response, and Ethan sighs as he leads the spell master into the washroom. Benny sinks onto his knees in front of the toilet and hunches over the bowl.

Ethan winces at the noise, rubbing circles into Benny's back.

"It's okay, Benny, let it all out."

"I don't think I have anymore 'it' to let out," Benny moans, wiping his mouth. "Fuck. I can barely swallow. My throat...it hurts."

"Let me get you some water," Ethan says, standing up and running out to get his water bottle. When he returns, Benny squeezes his hand and takes the bottle hastily.

"Thanks," he murmurs, taking a sip.

"No problem," Ethan replies. When he lowers the bottle, he winces, setting it down beside him.

"What's up?" Ethan asks, his voice hinting at his concern.

Benny squeezes his eyes shut. "Hurts to swallow."

He goes into another coughing fit, covering his mouth with his fist. Ethan sighs quietly, taking his phone out to look at the time.

Benny leans forward to take a peek. "Wha...what time is it?"

"Seven," Ethan answers.

Benny's eyes widen. "You've been here since noon. Do your parents know you're here?"

Ethan nods wearily. "They do, but they told me I have to go home at seven. My aunt is visiting from Boston and she's staying for dinner."

"Go," Benny says immediately.

"Are you kidding? I'm not leaving you like this," Ethan says, standing up from the bathroom floor and searching the cabinet secretary. "Where does your grandma keep her thermometer?"

"Left cabinet, beside the Advil," Benny answers, coughing and wheezing. "Ethan, you have to go to your family thing. It's probably a lot more important than a sick boyfriend."

"Found it," Ethan cuts him off, preparing the thermometer. "I'll tell my mom I can't go."

"Ethan —"

"Tongue out," Ethan commands, and Benny tiredly complies.

"You can't miss your aunt," Benny complains once the thermometer is in his mouth. "Just go to the dinner. I'll be right here, watching TV."

Ethan checks his phone to time him. "It's not a big deal, my parents will understand. I'm not leaving you like this —"

"My grandma will be here at seven-thirty." It's a white lie, but Ethan seems convinced.

"Are you sure?" he asks tentatively, letting the last few seconds pass by before he pulls out the thermometer.

"I'm sure, just go."

Ethan stares at the results. "Benny, you're running a high fever — your temperature is thirty-nine-point-eight."

"I feel fine, E. Just go." He hates lying to Ethan — he's _not_ fine; he could barely understand what was happening. Benny grabs onto the ledge of the sink and pulls himself up. Ethan helps him as well.

"Benny, you could barely walk," Ethan protests, but Benny shakes his head as he slowly ushers Ethan out of the bathroom.

"Just go for fuck's sake," Benny grumbles, his head pounding and his voice raspy. "The more you complain, the more irritable I'll get."

Ethan manages to laugh. "Geez, you're such a drama queen when you're sick."

"Please leave," Benny mumbles, giving Ethan his bag. He manages a smile. "Thanks for everything. I really appreciate your seven-hour dedication to my health, even if it doesn't look like it."

Ethan kisses Benny's cheek. When he pulls back, his lips graze Benny's flushed cheeks.

"I'm fully dedicated to you for as long as you want," he whispers with a smile before stepping back.

Benny gulps, avoiding his glare. "Fucking drama nerd."

Ethan rolls his eyes. "I'll see you after school tomorrow!" he chirps. Benny raises an eyebrow.

"After school?" he echoes. Ethan opens his mouth to repeat what he said, but then he realizes what Benny was implying. His eyes narrow accusingly.

"Benjamin Weir, don't you even _think_ about going to school tomorrow. You aren't even getting better, and I doubt you will in a day."

"But —"

"Until tomorrow afternoon!" Ethan interrupts, stretching the last word out. Before Benny could reply, he slams the door closed.

' _As if,'_ Benny thinks to himself with a small, tired smile; despite his head pounding like crazy, he could go for a Marvel movie again…

* * *

"He was _that_ sick?" Sarah asks as Ethan places books in his locker. He nods wearily.

"Yeah, he was pretty sick," Ethan says sadly. "I dropped by after dinner at around nine o'clock to see how he was, and he was pretty out of it — I don't even know if he heard what I was saying or not."

"Sounds like a drama queen to me," Erica snorts, and Sarah rolls her eyes.

"What do you mean he 'out of it'?" she asks, staring Erica down until she was listening as well. Ethan shrugs.

"He was pretty delirious," Ethan says slowly, "kind of like he was drunk. He kept throwing up, so I just helped him through that until he fell asleep."

"Did you at least stay with him?" Erica asks lowly, trying not to show sympathy. Ethan nods.

"I stayed over for the night, but he didn't wake up to vomit, so that's a plus. I left at around five this morning to go and change. He's probably awake by now…"

"What are you guys talking about?" a cheery voice asks from behind them.

They jump in surprise to see Rory standing at Ethan's locker. Erica closes her eyes and takes a breath, trying her best to compose herself.

"I'm trying my very best not to sock you in the face," she mutters. "We should put a bell on you or something…"

"So," he asks again, "what are you guys talking about?"

"Well, dork-number-one is talking about Benny," Erica says before Sarah could say anything, " _again._ We've had to tolerate it for five minutes, but he's not planning to stop any time soon. Apparently he's sick or something — I don't really care."

Ethan rolls his eyes. Rory frowns.

"Sick?" he echoes. "He didn't seem too sick in biology class.""

Ethan slams his locker shut. "What?"

Rory frowns, looking up at the ceiling in thought. "Yeah, we have second period together. Biology with Mrs. —"

"Yeah, I know, I know," Ethan says hastily. "Why Benny in class? He's sick."

Rory's eyes light up. "Oh, is _that_ why he nearly threw up in class?"

"Oh my god, no wonder he didn't answer my call during lunch," Ethan murmurs, trying to ignore what Rory was saying.

"Now that I think of it, he _was_ a bit pale during the lesson," Rory muses aloud, "though I thought it was because we dissected a frog today, and everyone was looking a bit pale."

Erica smiles smugly. "Boy-toy's rebelling, huh?"

"We have English in ten minutes — I'll confront him then." Ethan says, ignoring Erica.

"Punishment, huh?" She smirks. "Kinky."

The warning bell for fourth period rigs, and Ethan opens his locker and pulls out his English notebook.

"I swear, you vampires will be the end of me," Ethan mutters, trying to look serious. "I'll tell you how everything goes at the end of the day."

"Can't wait," Erica deadpans.

"Erica!" Sarah hisses. "She didn't mean it, E, don't worry."

"Wait, I don't understand what's happening? Why are we confronting Benny? Why —"

" _Goodbye_ ," Ethan says, cutting Rory off by stretching the word with a small smile.

"Bye!" Rory chirps as Ethan walks off. He then faces Sarah and Erica and asks, "So what was that all about?"

Sarah sighs. "We all just witnessed the calm before the storm."

* * *

Benny walks into class quietly, his hood up. His hope is that the seats in the back of class were available so he could stay in class unnoticed; especially from the one person he was hiding from —

"Benjamin Weir, I swear to God that if that's you behind that hood, you're definitely going to get it," a familiar voice says from behind him. Benny closes his eyes and takes a breath, slowly turning around.

"Hello, Ethan," he says sheepishly, trying his best not to hint out that his throat was killing him by just saying two words. "Er...surprise?"

Ethan shakes his head, pulling him aside and grabbing his shoulders.

"Oh my, Benny, you're so pale," Ethan mumbles quietly. "Why did you come to school, Benny? I think you look worse than you did yesterday…"

Benny manages a weak smile. "Now I find that just rude."

"Benny, you should be at home." Ethan hates how whiny he sounds, but he was desperate for answers. Benny looks down quietly.

"Didn't want to stay in bed alone all day," he mumbles. "Plus, I can't miss this lesson. I have no idea what's the difference between a transitive verb and an intransitive verb, and we have a test on Friday —"

He coughs, and every inhale of breath set his lungs on fire. Ethan winces at the noise.

"You need to go home," he whispers, leading him to the two desks in the back as they waited for their teacher to arrive. "You're still sick, and I don't want you getting worse."

Benny shakes his head, but doesn't respond. Ethan's shoulder sags in disappointment.

"I'll take notes for the both of us, just please go to the nurse's office so you can go home," Ethan pleads, his voice hinting at his desperation. Benny sighs.

"They won't believe me," Benny mutters. "I feel much better, I swear. This morning, I even took a shower without dying. My temperature went down to thirty-six; the average for teens."

"Don't tell me you actually searched that up," Ethan says, narrowing his eyes with a smug smile.

Benny blinks. "Er, yeah."

Ethan frowns, watching Benny shift uncomfortably in his chair.

"Are you alright?" he asks for what seems like the millionth time.

Benny hums a 'yes' under his breath, but doesn't say anything after that. Ethan debates telling him to go home for the umpeenth time, but decides against it when the teacher walks in and Benny straightens up in his chair.

He looks somewhat _proud_ — he was up and running, despite the both of them knowing Benny was still feeling poorly. Ethan wants to call him out on it, but he knows how stubborn Benny is.

"Alright, class," the teacher's voice drones on, "take out your notebooks and your grammar textbook, as we are going to learn more about…"

* * *

He feels sick.

Benny will never admit it, but he can feel the sweat on the back of his neck. The teacher's voice is melting in his brain and past his ability to comprehend anything the teacher was...teaching.

' _Get a grip,'_ he thinks wearily, trying to push down the bile threatening to creep up his throat. He swallows thickly, nearly gagging at the thought of it.

"Hey, B," Ethan whispers from beside him, leaning to the side to face him. "You don't look so good. It's only been thirty minutes into the lesson and she hasn't talked about anything important — I told you that you can go home if you want."

Benny shakes his head. "Ethan, I'm fine. It's just —"

"Do you have something so important to share that you must share it now, Mr. Weir?" the teacher interrupts in a monotone voice. "I'm sure Mr. Morgan wants to learn as well, you know."

Benny can feel the blood rushing to his cheeks — a mixture of embarrassment and how damn hot he is right now — and he smiles weakly.

"Actually, Mrs., that's my fault," Ethan says politely, flashing a small, apologetic smile. "I was just asking him a question about verbs."

The teacher scoffs. "No need to defend him, Mr. Morgan," She pauses, then adds, "but thank you."

The teacher faces the chalkboard once more, and some people snicker around them. Benny mouths 'thank you' towards Ethan, and he smiles.

When Benny continues to take notes, he realizes that he is actually sweating beneath his sweater. His hand is shaking and his stomach was turning.

"So there is a difference between proper and common nouns," the teacher says boredly. "A common noun is a more generalized object, person, place, or idea, and is not usually capitalized."

Benny's head continued to pound in his skull at every word that hit him. He could feel his hand quiver in his sweater pocket, and he was breaking into a cold sweat.

Someone raises their hand. "Does general titles, such as mother or father, count as common nouns? Like, what if you call your mom 'mother' but not in the general way?"

' _What does that even mean?'_ Benny's tired conscience argues. All of what seemed liked loud voices echo in his head as if it was just mushed together. He rubs his eyes, attempting to clear the blurred lines in his vision.

"In that context, no. If speaking in general terms, you do not capitalize the title, but they are considered proper nouns because they are speaking to one specific mother or father, rather than all the mothers and fathers in the world, per say."

Spots of black dotted his vision, and he feels like he is about to pass out. He sneaks a glance at Ethan, who seems to be really focused on the lesson. He wraps his sweater around him in hopes of stopping himself from shivering, but it just made everything seem hotter.

Another student asks a question, and the teacher corrects them. Benny covers his mouth to muffle his gags and he realizes that he is seconds away from either throwing up all over his desk or passing out.

His hand shoots up right away. Luckily, the teacher notices him at first glance.

"Yes, Mr. Weir?" she drones. Benny blinks.

"Er, may I go to the bathroom?" he asks in a raspy voice. The teacher's eyes narrow accusingly.

"Do you find my lesson boring, Mr. Weir?" she grumbles. "I can stop teaching and hand you the quiz right now if you find the 'bathroom' more entertaining."

She doesn't believe him. Benny can feel Ethan's worried eyes on him, and he does his best not to let out a cough.

"I-I...I feel poorly." The words come out as a stoic, dumbfounded sentence. The teacher looks at him with a disapproving frown, but waves her hands in front of him, dismissing him.

Benny mumbles his gratitude, and he bolts out of the room. Ethan's stare follows him out, and he looks at the teacher wearily, though doesn't make a sound — he's bound to come back eventually, he hopes. All he needs is to be patient.

* * *

He doesn't come back, and it's nearly the end of class. The teacher is giving the final remarks, but Ethan's eyes have been at the clock the whole time. He taps his pencil against the desk impatiently, before he finally snaps.

"Erm, Mrs.?" Ethan calls out. The teacher sighs, crossing her arms, seemingly knowing what he was asking for.

"Check on him, Mr. Morgan," she says lowly. Ethan smiles briefly, standing up and going out the door in a rush with his bag in his hand.

He goes through the halls and goes straight to the bathroom. When he arrives, he drops his bag down and stares at the rows of stalls.

"Benny?" His voice echoes the empty room. "Benny, come on, don't be like this. I knew that you are feeling sick, you should've just stayed at home —"

Suddenly, he hears someone gag loudly. His eyes go straight to the third stall, where he sees a small spot of blood on the ground. His eyes widen, and he goes straight to the stall and bangs at the door.

"Benny?!" he exclaims, trying to get the door open. "Benny, open up!"

Benny's groans of pain is all he hears. He sighs, throwing himself onto the ground and onto his knees. He crawls under the stall and gasps.

Benny is slouched over on the side of the stall, a trail of blood mixed with his own saliva on his chin. His eyes are barely open, and he is shivering in his place on the ground. Ethan kneels beside him, noticing the thick layer of sweat that coated his neck and his forehead.

"Benny, are you okay? What happened — did you vomit...blood?" Ethan asks, making a sudden realization. Benny continues to shiver in his place, but remains quiet. He whimpers quietly.

"What...time?" Benny croaks. Ethan checks his watch.

"Nearly end of fourth period," he replies. "Benny, we need to get you to the nurse's office or something. How long have you been here? Have you been vomiting this whole time?"

"Fourth…?" Benny whispers. "Four o'clock. Grandma...it's not even five why...stop it."

Ethan goes cold. Benny was at school, not his house, and he was definitely not his grandma — does he even understand what was going on?

"Benny, you're scaring me." Ethan tries not to show any hints of desperation in his voice, but he's blinking tears back before they could fall.

Benny hurls over the toilet bowl again, his retches echoing in Ethan's ears. When he lifts his head up, he nearly topples over and onto Ethan's lap. He tries not to shake as much as Benny was.

"B-Benny, you're going to the nurse's office. You're vomiting blood, and you're freaking me out. We'll get you something...can you stand up?"

Benny makes no noise. "Can you stand up?" Ethan repeats again. Benny shudders violently, startling Ethan, and squeezes his eyes shut.

"Five…," he mumbles, "five more minutes, gran'ma. I...I'll come down, just please."

He gags again, but doesn't throw up. His face is flushed red, and his hair was soaked in sweat. His shudders weren't helping Ethan to calm down.

"Do you even know who I am?" Ethan asks quietly, trying not to show any fear that could make Benny worse. "Do you understand anything I'm saying?"

"Leave me alone," he whispers. "I told you that I don't wanna go out."

Ethan's heart is racing. Benny didn't know what was going on. He watches helplessly as Benny vomits again into the toilet bowl. Ethan sees a glimpse of red.

Benny's head falls on the surface of the stall, and he moans, "Turn off...heater. It's...hot."

Ethan shakes his head, pressing his hand against his sweaty forehead and moving his damp hair up, forming some kind of quiff. He nearly skips a breath — he's burning up like the sun itself.

"I'm calling Sarah," he mutters, pulling out his phone and dialling her hastily. He explains to her what was happened, all while trying not to let Benny's grunts of pain break him.

"I...I don't want to see anyone, I told you," Benny mumbles again.

Ethan blinks backs tears. "Benny, you're sick, and I don't know what to do."

"Ethan?" someone calls from outside the stall. Ethan stands up immediately, keeping his eyes on Benny the whole time, who slumps down in his seat.

"Sarah?" he calls back, unlocking the door and swinging it open. He's greeted with the brunette, and the school nurse. Sarah opens her mouth to say something, but the nurse beats her to it.

"What happened?" she asks quietly, pushing past Ethan and kneeling on the ground beside Benny. Ethan notices that she's fairly young — perhaps a university graduate — and that she was uncomfortably close to Benny.

"I think he's spiked a high fever. He's really sweaty," Ethan says bluntly, and she reels back a bit. Ethan bites back a smirk.

"How long has he been here?"

"Nearly forty minutes," Ethan answers. "He left thirty minutes into the class."

"Who's his teacher?"

"Mrs. Robertson," he replies, "grade 10 English."

She places the back of her hand on his cheek and visibly softens. "Oh my, he's burning up. Poor thing…"

"What do you think we should do?" Ethan sneers, and Sarah nudges him.

"Ethan," she hisses warningly, and Ethan whispers back, "She doesn't need to be so...handsy with him."

"I think I should've stayed home." It hurts Ethan to see Benny so confused and helpless. He blinks, his eyes unfocused, and stares in the direction of the nurse. "Think I'm sick."

"You are, hun," she cooes, rubbing his leg. She leans to the side and looks at the blood-rimmed toilet bowl. "My, you certainly did a number on this, did ya?"

Ethan clenches his fist. "He threw up a lot of blood."

"I see," the nurse hums. "I think he needs to go to the hospital right away. I can call someone quickly, but you guys are going to have to stay here with him while I go out —"

"Please," Ethan snaps, moving to the side to let her walk past. When the nurse was gone, Sarah smirks, not making any eye contact.

"I can't believe you were jealous," Sarah surmises, smiling smugly. Ethan crosses his arms defensively.

"Her hand was inches from his crotch," Ethan exclaims, "I had every reason to feel a little overprotective. Benny isn't completely gay, you know."

"I do know that —"

Sarah's smug remark is cut off by the sound of Benny throwing up again in the toilet. Ethan goes over to him, rubbing his back softly.

"Benny, we're getting you help, don't worry," Ethan says reassuringly. Benny nods wearily, shivering in Ethan's grasp. He tears himself away from the toilet bowl and into Ethan's arms.

Ethan's heart breaks at his helpless whimpers. He pushes his damp hair up, supporting the back of his neck with his other hand. His skin is covered in a feverish sweat, and he is still burning up.

"Do you think you can speed to the nurse's office and get a thermometer?" Sarah nods, and speeds out of the bathroom. Seconds later, she comes back with a small thermometer, and hands it to Ethan. He mumbles his gratitude, and lifts Benny's head up.

"Benny, I'm going to take your temperature now, okay?" he asks gently. Sarah crosses her arms tentatively, watching nervously at the scene unfolding. Benny squeezes his eyes shut but nods, barely parting his mouth. Ethan puts the thermometer in his mouth and holds it still. Ethan feels Benny's hand lift shakily to his free hand, squeezing it weakly.

"Is he okay?" Sarah asks quietly, and adds briefly, "I learned in health class to always keep asking questions about this for a full report to the paramedics afterwards."

Ethan's eyes fall on the sweater Benny was wearing, which was soaked with sweat. He pulls the zipper down and takes it off carefully, throwing it to the side.

"He's burning up," Ethan mutters. "His hands are really shaky, and he can barely understand anything I say. I don't even know if he is responsive or not..."

Minutes later, the thermometer beeps. Ethan takes it out and looks at the results, before his heart nearly skips a beat.

"Forty two," he whispers shakily. "Sarah, he's at forty two degrees. That can't be normal, that —"

"Ethan calm down," she soothes. "He's probably spiking a high fever. This is completely normal."

"He said he was cooler last night, he said —"

"Fevers come and go, Ethan," she says interrupts reassuringly. "He just reaching the peak of his fever; if anything, this should be a good thing. Benny will probably be fine after this is all over."

 _'Probably,'_ Ethan thinks wearily.

Benny shudders violently, startling Ethan.

"Is there anything I can do, B?" he questions, before checking his phone for the time and grumbling, "Where's that damn nurse?"

Benny blinks, his eye clouded and red from tears of exhaustion. Ethan can tell he was trying to make sense of the words he was saying, though judging from the heat projecting off his body, any sense of understanding in his brain must've been fried.

"Stop it," Benny wheezes, "I don't wanna go out."

He pushes himself off Ethan and vomits again, his throat burning with every breath. He sobs loudly at the effort, looking at Ethan with wide, confused eyes.

"I should'a stayed...home…," he whimpers. Ethan's heart breaks even more — he hates seeing Benny so frightened.

"You should've stayed home, Benny," he answers softly. "I wish you stayed home, but it'll be alright. You'll be okay."

Benny blinks, his eyes drooping. "I...what's wrong with me?"

Ethan sighs. "I don't know, B. Nothing we can't fix for sure."

Benny says nothing after that. Ethan takes a deep breath and hears the door open.

Everything's a blur after that — paramedics take Benny despite his mumbles of pain, and Ethan is forced to watch. Luckily, he goes in the back of the ambulance with him.

"Help him on, sir," the paramedic instructs, and Ethan pulls Benny's limp arm over his shoulder and helps him onto the ambulance. He wobbles on his way, not able to keep himself up. He puts most pressure on Ethan, which he does his best to handle.

"I...told 'em I didn't wanna go," Benny mumbles as a paramedic slides a bucket on the ground in front of Benny's feet. He shivers as he curls up against Ethan, who is wiping the sweat off his forehead.

"You have to, Benny," he murmurs. "We need to see what's happening with you."

Benny nods wearily, squeezing Ethan's hand that was resting on his knee.

"Please don't leave me?" he asks in a small whimper. His eyes were wide and confused, filled with an indescribable fear. Ethan didn't know what to say; he looked so frightened that it almost made himself scared as well.

Ethan rubs his sweaty palms with his thumb.

"Of course," he whispers. "I would never leave you."

* * *

"Is anyone here for Benjamin Weir?" a doctor asks from the doorway of the waiting room. Ethan immediately stands up, already walking towards him, tossing his coffee cup in the bin beside him. Benny's grandma's, who came an hour after Benny was admitted into the hospital, slowly wakes up in her seat and leans forward in anxious curiosity.

"Benny? Yes, we're here for him, is he alright?" Ethan asks urgently, and the doctor holds his hand up calmly.

"Don't worry, sir, he is alright." Ethan takes a deep breath of relief. Benny's grandma walks up to them slowly.

"What was wrong with him?" she questions, and the doctor looks at his clipboard.

"He had a stomach ulcer," he explains. "Probably caused by a mix of stress and a poor diet. It burst, which is what all the blood you saw was when he was throwing up. Of course, his fever was enough to make it worse, but it was good that you called us, or it would've been much more...different. He's all stitched up and resting now."

"Uh-huh," Ethan says, motioning him to give him more information. The words make him a bit queasy, but he fights it down. "What caused it to bust?"

"We suspect hot water, perhaps from a shower," he answers, tapping his pencil against his clipboard. "If he took a warm shower in the morning to trying to reduce his fever, the heat from the water could've caused it. It was in good intentions — to kill off the illness by cleaning off the sweat that carries the dead virus — but it made caused the ulcer to burst."

"He did take a long time in the bathroom," Evelyn muses aloud.

"Is he alright?" Ethan asks again. The doctor nods.

"He is fine," he confirms. "Mr. Weir still has a fever, but we gave him fever reducers to make him feel better. You can visit him, but he may be a bit woozy and disoriented. It would be best to give him some rest, so if you wish to see him, it'd be wise to keep it short."

"Thank you," Ethan mumbles, pushing past him and walking out of the room. Benny's grandma trails behind him, trying to match his speed.

"Ethan, will you be alright to meet with Benny on your own?" she asks. "I need to go out and get him some schoolwork your principal advised me to pick up."

Ethan stops and faces her, smiling and saying, "Of course, Mrs. Weir."

She exchanges a smile, and walks in the opposite direction. Ethan continues to make his way down the hall to Benny's room, and goes in quietly.

The room is dark aside from the small buzz from the TV, barely visible from where he was standing. He peeks through the curtain dividing Benny's bed from an empty one, and smiles softly.

Benny's sleeping quietly, turning his head a bit in his bed. Ethan takes in the IV in his arm and the nasal tubes beneath Benny's nose — the absence of an oxygen mask makes him slightly relieved.

Ethan sits down in the chair beside him, pulling out his phone and playing a few games while he waits for Benny to wake up.

Ten minutes later, he feels Benny move from underneath his blankets. Ethan lowers his phone, looking at the spellmaster stir. His eyes flutter open, and letting a small groan escape from his lips, looks around. He seems a bit confused, even afraid, but as soon as he sees Ethan he smiles.

"Hey," he says, his voice still raspy.

Ethan smiles widely, lifting Benny's hand and kissing it. "Morning, Sleeping Beauty."

"Is it...what time is it?"

Ethan manages a laugh. "It's ten o'clock at night. I was kidding." He pauses, and adds sheepishly, "You were a bit like Sleeping Beauty."

"Where am I?" he asks urgently, sitting up, before groaning at the pain in his stomach. Ethan lies him down gently.

"The hospital," Ethan says, a bit confused. "You don't remember?"

Benny squeezes his eyes closed and rests his head on the pillow, facing Ethan. "I remember vomiting a lot...and someone that wasn't you touching my leg."

Ethan bites back a smile. "Damn nurse. I can't believe you remembered her enough to mention her. She was trying to get to you somehow, I swear…"

Benny's laugh is low and raspy, but genuine all the same. "I'm in tenth grade, E. No nurse is going to be hitting on a sweaty, tenth grader."

"This one was, apparently," Ethan says defensively, looking down shyly. "But that doesn't matter — do you remember anything else?"

Benny crinkles his nose. "Not really, no."

Ethan almost feels relieved.

"It's a bit blurry...," Benny continues hesitantly, "but I remember your voice. I felt really floaty, and your voice was pretty much the only thing I heard the entire way through."

He coughs a little, and Ethan rubs his arm softly.

"I'm glad," he murmurs.

"You didn't leave me," Benny replies with a small smile, "thank you."

"I would never leave you, B," Ethan answers, before a doctor walks in.

"Mr. Weir, we're glad you're awake," he says. "If Ethan doesn't mind, we'd like to run a few tests. If all is well, you can go home tomorrow morning — we just want to keep you overnight just in case."

"OF course," Benny readily agrees.

The doctor faces Ethan. "You can step out if you'd like, Mr. Morgan."

Ethan was about to turn away to walk out of the room, but he felt Benny's warm hand on his arm. He turns around to see Benny's shy smile.

"Stay," he mumbles.

"But the doctor said —"

"It's fine. I don't mind." Benny looks at him with tired eyes. "Tonight, I need you to stay."

Ethan matches his smile and pulls a chair closer to his bed.

"Whatever you want, B," he says quietly. "Whatever you want."


End file.
